Tales of a Tesla in Tampa

It's been 1 year since I bought my first Tesla... do I regret it?

It's been months since I've done a new episode of this podcast.  Why?  Did I get rid of my Tesla?  Was everyone right... do I regret buying an EV?  Has my car caught on fire yet?  If the answer to all of these questions is no, why DID I stop making new episodes?

7 Downtown Tampa Parking Garages with Free EV Charging

If you’re going to a Lightning game or some other event at Amalie Arena, walking the Riverwalk, heading to Gasparilla, visiting the Florida Aquarium or having a cigar in Ybor City, you have 7 city owned public garages that offer free electric vehicle charging.

5 Questions from my Tampa radio listeners about switching to a Tesla

Since ditching my gas guzzler and buying my first electric vehicle, I've had friends and listeners ask the same 4 or 5 questions.  Do you really save money?  How is it driving one compared to a normal car?  How do I charge the car?  What's the cost to "fill up" at those Wawa superchargers?  How does someone who's 6'4" fit in a tiny Tesla Model 3?  And what will I do when the Tesla catches on fire?  Because ya know... that happens ALL the time. 

Review: Carsmetics in Clearwater’s body work on my Tesla Model 3

After rocks came flying at my brand new Tesla Model 3 on the Howard Frankland Bridge, I had repair work done at Carsmetics on Ulmerton Road in Clearwater.  The damage came out to almost $2,000.  How did it look?  Did I have to pay or did the construction company out of Lutz that was responsible cut the check?  Are there remnants of the damage or were they able to make it look like new?

The thing I thought I’d dislike about owning a Tesla

For Tesla owners in the Tampa Bay area, owning a Tesla often means a Wawa run... especially if you don't have a way to charge your EV at home.  Filling up an old fashioned gas tank takes less than 5 minutes.  But charging a Tesla can take up to an hour if you're "filling it up" to 100%.   Who has that kind of time?  We live in the instant gratification world of 2023.  Turns out the thing I thought would bug me about owning a Tesla has become one of the many perks.

A NEW $27,500 Tesla in St. Pete?

The 2023 government tax credit comes to an end for the Tesla Model 3 in 2 weeks. Your chance to get a NEW Tesla for $27,500 is going away.  on January 1, the $7,500 electric vehicle tax rebate from the government disappears.  There's no telling if or when it will ever be back. Plus the Tesla I paid $40,000 for last month is now $35,000.
https://ts.la/eugene813022

My new Tesla got pelted by rocks on the Howard Frankland Bridge

To PPF or not PPF that is the question.
The question got answered just one month in to owning my new Tesla. I’d watched the YouTube videos with drivers debating the merits of getting paint protection film put on. Was it worth the expense? Spending thousands on PPF seemed unnecessary. Then some flying rocks on the Howard Frankland Bridge heading into Tampa woke me up.

I’m not the ideal candidate for a Tesla so why did I buy one?

Last month, I drove off the St. Petersburg Tesla lot in my new Model 3. 2 weeks prior, I really had no thought of getting rid of my Toyota Camry. But sometimes what happens in Vegas does NOT stay in Vegas.
At a “fill up” at a Tesla charging station in Las Vegas, 2 things happened.  #1 - I learned the car farts. The other reason I'll get into in Episode 1.
Getting a Tesla? Please use my referral link. We'll both will get free charging: https://ts.la/eugene813022